That's My Dad
by RockfordGirl26
Summary: Based on the movie The Presidio starring Sean Connery and Mark Harmon What if Colonel Caldwell had remarried and his young daughter was in the class when he showed up at the Museum to talk to Ross about Donna. Can his wife and young daughter help him see that he is a great father? The whole wife and young daughter angle is my own. In the movie, it's just Caldwell and Donna.
1. Chapter 1

"What's this?" Julius asked interrupting Sgt. Mgr. Ross McClure as he was giving the tour of the Presidio Museum. The boy was looking at a display of a Vietnam era dress greens with a medal around the neck.

"That's the medal of honor. It's given to people who go above and beyond in the call of duty. It's the highest award any American can get" Eight-year-old Brooke Caldwell answered.

"She's right Julius. Take a look at that picture. The one on the right is Lyndon Johnson, he was President then. Does the man on the left look familiar? Take your time. He wasn't nearly as ugly then." Colonel Caldwell said with a smile.

Brooke stood next to her mother, Kelly Caldwell. Kelly was helping to chaperone the group of third graders on their field trip to the museum. Brooke found it hard to contain her giggles at her father's joke, but she knew better than to talk about her Uncle Ross's medal, but she made sure to listen as her dad told the class that it was Uncle Ross that won the medal. She always listened when her dad talked about Uncle Ross.

Colonel Caldwell continued to tell the class about the man receiving the medal had carried one of his men to safety in a country called Vietnam. He also told them about how the man was ambushed by forty or fifty enemy soldiers and how the man killed all of them all by himself with just an M-16 and a few hand grenades. "See that gun there," Caldwell said pointing to a .45 incased encased in glass, "That was given to the man in the picture as a way to say thanks."

"Forty or fifty all by himself? No way!"Julius exclaimed.

"Okay, class I think it's time to go now. Tell the Sgt. Major thank you." Miss Preston, Brooke's teacher said.

"Where's Vietnam anyway?"Julius asked

"It's in Southeast Asia. Like all the way on the other side of the world." Brooke said proudly. Her dad didn't talk about it much, but she knew that her dad and Uncle Ross had been in Vietnam together.

The class began to file out, "So did we kick ass?" Caldwell heard Julius ask on the way out the door.


	2. Chapter 2

Later that evening Kelly Caldwell stood in the doorway of their living room, drying her hands on a kitchen towel watching her husband as he half-heartedly listened to the football game on the television. His dress greens discarded for the evening, he wore a grey sweatshirt and the matching pants. "Who's winning, Colonel?" she asked.

He looked up to see his wife looking at him. She always seemed to know when he had a lot on his mind. "The bad guys I suppose." He said half-smiling.

She walked over to him and sat across his lap and laid her head on his shoulder. He, in turn, laid his hand on her expanding stomach. She was pregnant with their third (his fourth) and last child. He felt the child lay strong kicks against his palm. He hoped that the child would be another boy, another boy to carry on the Caldwell family name and he hoped that their son Andrew wouldn't be the only male in the family.

"What's on your mind, honey?" Kelly asked, giving her husband a kiss on the temple.

"It's Donna. She's seeing Jay Austin. I know he's not right for her and I think she is continuing to see him out of spite."

"Ah I see. So that's why you came to the museum today to see Russ. And I just thought you stopped by to talk to the kids." Kelly said with a slight chuckle, trying to lighten up the mood.

"Listen, you know all about the history Jay Austin and I have. I don't want him using my daughter to get to me. Never in a million years did I think that Jay Austin and I would have to work together on a case." Caldwell said, his shoulders heavy with the weight of what was on his mind.

"Alan, look at me," Kelly pausing until his dark eyes met her green eyes, "Now I know I'm not Donna's mother, but I do love her like she was my own. She's a young woman, and for all you know Jay Austin's motives may be completely sincere. What I do know is that the more you push the issue, the more she is going to see him just to spite you. My advice is to play nice, try to be his friend."

Caldwell chuckled, "Are you sure you and Ross didn't talk about this stuff. That's almost exactly what he said to me."

Kelly got up from her husband's lap and stretched, "What can I say, great minds think alike. Now come on, Colonel it's time for daddy duty. We have a couple of kids to tuck in"


	3. Chapter 3

"Okay, Brooke, it's time to get into bed," Caldwell said with a sigh.

"Okay, daddy." The small girl with the dark hair and green eyes jumped into her bed and waited for her father to tuck her in.

"Daddy, Julius really liked it when you talked to my class today at the museum. He said you were the coolest speaker we've ever had!"

Caldwell chuckled at his daughter's words, "Did he now? Well, maybe your teacher will let me talk to your class again sometime."

"Daddy, I love you, and mommy, and Alex, and Donna, and the baby," Brooke said with a yawn as she snuggled in under her covers.

"I do too sweetheart. I'll see you in the morning." Caldwell said. He kissed Brooke on the head and padded out of the room.

Any other evening Alan Caldwell would have gone back downstairs to sit in front of the TV to watch the news or the sports highlights but this evening it seemed that a good night's sleep was what he needed to help release the weight from his shoulders.

Kelly Caldwell laid in bed reading a book about Jackie Kennedy. the only light in the room came from the lamp on her nightstand. She continued to read until her husband settled in under the covers.

She took her glasses off and set her book down. "You know, Alan, you're not the same man you were when Donna's mother took her own life. Hell, you're not the same man you were eight years ago. I've seen you grow so much as a father and as a man since we've been married, but I've also seen you struggle as you've watched Donna grow up. She'll always be your first baby girl, but she needs room. She's going to make mistakes and she's going to fall, but you have to be sure that you're there to catch her and to help her when she asks."

Caldwell took a deep breath as he listened to his wife's words, " I know, you're right. I just love her so much and it's hard for me to stand back while I watch her make her own decisions that I think are wrong. Even though I know it's not my place to decide whether it's a mistake or not. Baby steps, right?"

"Now you're catching on, Colonel," she said against his lips as she kissed him.

After their heart to heart, the couple turned off their respective bedside lamps and settled in under the covers.

Kelly laid with her head on her husband's chest and she thought about the conversation she heard between Julius and her daughter.

"Alan," she said as she played with the hair on his chest. He answered her with a grunt. "When we were walking back to the school today Julius asked Brooke who the guy was that was telling them about the medal of honor. Oh, you should have seen her. Her eyes lit up and I saw her swell with pride. She said "That's my dad" and she continued to tell him all about her daddy. Don't ever for a second think you're failing because I have it on good authority at ALL of your children love you"

It turns out that his wife's words of encouragement were all Ala Caldwell needed to get a much needed good night's rest.


End file.
